The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
While tidepooling on the rocks along a California beach I came across several anemones. They all differed somewhat and exhibited different colors, but this one was my favorite. The bright green and magenta hues of the tentacles really drew me in.
Specific Feedback
What do you think of this image? It reminded me of some of those deep sea creatures from old films that I saw as a kid. Anyone agree? Thanks for looking.
Technical Details
Canon R6 Mkii, 100 mm macro lens, Tripod
F/16, ISO 640, 1/20 sec
Processed in DXO Pure Raw 5 and LR
It is good to see these anemones as they are very photogenic. Excellent colors and my only nit is to tone down some of the very bright features in the upper LH corner and near the mouth of the anemone. This photo reminds me of the mysteries of the ocean and its always good to see photos from this feature of the environment. Well done…Jim
Beautiful image Ted! Great colors, the varying textures between the soft tentacles and the sand, a very interesting composition that keeps the eye moving around the image. Being a minimalist, most of the time, I tend to look to eliminate things to simplify a composition, as such I found I wanted to crop down from the top to just below the seashell in the ULC, as that bright area distracted from the main subject. I initially wanted to keep it a square crop, but I really liked the crab peeking over the edge on the left. Very well done!
Ted: I like this a lot. When I was a little boy my grandmother live in a beach house in Yachats, Oregon. I saw all kinds of anemones in the tide pools and liked to tease them into closing up. Of course I had zero clue at the time of what good photo subjects they could be. The colors on this one and all the little details within and without it are marvelous. My only suggestion echoes @Jim_Zablotny regarding the bright ULC. Tone that down and this elevates from a 10 to a solid 11. >=))>
Beautiful image of the anemone, Ted. Another vote for toning down that upper left corner. I also wish the crab just to the left of the anemone hadn’t been cut off. If you have the canvas in the original it would be cool addition to have it in its entirety.
Bill-Yes, I might have darkened that upper left corner a little too much. I expanded the crop to reveal the entire crab on the left side of the anemone, as @Dennis_Plank suggested, and added some clarity to make it more noticeable. Thanks for your interest in the image.
I love the reposted image, certainly the subject and context is more clear to me as a viewer and the darker background allows me to see the subject better.
The colors and textures are fantastic. I’m in 100% agreement with Bill. I think the rework leans too far into the dark tones in that corner, and that somewhere in between works best.
